The Day When Nobody Died
by Holy Spork
Summary: He ran away from his past. She was trapped with no hope of escape. When the Coward and the Prisoner meet, they must to find a way to heal each other's hurts and protect what is dearest to them.
1. Dreams and Prayer

**Warning! Spoilers may cause brain damage! If you have not seen the Altessas's house scene with Yuan, Lloyd, and Kratos, GO AWAY NOW OR LIVE THE REST OF YOUR LIFE WITH A LLOYD-LIKE I.Q.!**

Back to the point, this is yet _another_ (but _my_ first) Kranna fic describing how Anna and Kratos meet and what their lives are like until the inevitable end. Admittedly this idea has been done to death, but I really wanted to do this. So I'm writing it, and posting it on the Internet. If you don't like it then... fine. But at least leave a review... please?

Disclaimer: Tales of Symphonia is solely the property of Namco-Bandai. Also, the lyrics for the song "If Everyone Cared" belongs to the band Nickelback. (The chorus for the song is where I got the title and the inspiration for this story. While it seems pretty ironic now, considering how this is going to end, the title will make sense eventually.)

* * *

_The Day When Nobody Died_

Prologue: Dreams and Prayer

No windows, no room, no privacy, and no dignity. Stuck living in small rooms that were almost as far from sanitary as it was possible to be. All tightly packed together, they were forced to practically sleep on top of each other. Outside the cells, armed guards on patrol would walk by and glare at the captives, or maybe drop a scathing or condescending comment before walking on. Some of the more enthusiastic ones would even try to kick the prisoners through the bars.

The younger ones or the recently caught dreamed of escape, that maybe if they jumped a guard at the right time, they could get the keys to their cages and escape. They could run far far away, and never have to return to their prisons ever again. The older ones, the ones that had been there the longest just sat and stared into space, staring at things no one else could see. Their hope had withered and died long ago. They sat quite in their cells awaiting their final judgment.

Then there were the ones who were losing hope, but couldn't let it go. They knew they would never see the stars again, never live a life beyond the confines of the ranch. Yet some little piece of them begged for release, a freedom they had been denied. Stuck in the middle, between dreams and reality.

She was like that. She remembered life beyond the steel fence, which was more than what some of the others could say. She longed to be free again. Yet a little bit of cynicism was beginning to infect her hopes. She had been here for years, and no one had come to rescue them, and no one had successfully escaped.

And so Anna Cole spent her days at the human ranch clinging to a little shattered dream that she thought would never come true.

* * *

Prayer, to him, had always been about shouting into the dark of oblivion, begging for someone, anyone, to answer the plea. It had been pointless. Now he was praying more earnestly and more desperately then he ever had before in his life. He prayed that somewhere there was a real Goddess – or God, it didn't matter – to hear him. He prayed that no one had seen him leaving, or would miss him soon after his departure. 

Kratos Aurion stared out of the window, looking in the direction of the Tower of Salvation. It was currently hidden, invisible to everyone, but he knew it was still there. It would only appear when some poor soul was named 'Chosen' and have to go on the journey to regenerate the world. He knew he was running away, but what else could he do? He couldn't just quit Cruxis, not after four thousand years of service. But he could not bear to continue to commit sins in the name of Lord Yggdrasill's ideals.

_I should stop thinking of him as 'Lord' Yggdrasill,_ he thought.

He looked down at the sleeping form of Noishe, who seemed to be quite comfortable sleeping outside. The poor animal was tired after fleeing the tower and needed rest. Kratos didn't, but he couldn't just abandon his old friend, so they had stopped in this place for the night. The Hima inn had a strict rule about no pets inside the building, and Kratos wasn't willing to argue the matter. Noishe didn't seem to mind it however. When was the last time the protozoan had been 'outside' anyway? He couldn't remember.

Noishe rolled onto his back, his paws twitching. He was probably dreaming of chasing small furry things, Kratos concluded, and he walked away from the window. He sat down on the lone bed and stared at the far wall, for lack of anything better to do. He had been planning to leave Cruxis for some time now. Actually _leaving_ Derris-Kharlan had turned out to be more of an ordeal than he had expected. This was due more to his fear of being caught, than from any actual risk. He had passed one or two lesser angels as he left Derris-Kharlan, but they all looked away and didn't get in his way. No one questioned the behavior of _any_ of the Four Seraphim.

He was still anxious about when Mithos discovered that Kratos had run away. No doubt he would want to conduct a search – there was no way he would let Origin's Seal just walk away. Whether Mithos would then kill his former companion out of spite or keep him from ever walking under a blue sky ever again… he didn't know. Neither option held any appeal.

Now he had to put that all behind him. He had to make a new living as a mercenary – no one asked mercenaries any personal questions, and it should be a relatively easy way to make money. He could carve out a new life for himself, a new identity, and separate himself from the seraph that had allowed the world to degrade as far as it had. Just lie low, do an odd job here and there, and he could live a relatively peaceful life.

_Just don't let them find me_…

* * *

**A/N:** Ah, the stupid divider bar things are being stupid... 

I bet you can tell I'm not very inventive when it comes to last names. Yes, 'Cole' was the best I could come up with for Anna. Nothing else seemed to fit.

I'm not sure whether or not I'm going to post the rest of the story, because this kind of story has been done to _freaking death_. If you would like me to continue, please review. And I do like constructive criticism, if you have any.

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	2. Caged

Thank you everyone who reviewed! You're all amazing, and I will try to not disappoint you all!

Disclaimer: If I owned Tales of Symphonia, Dirk would have gone with Lloyd and Genis and beaten up Desians during the burning of Iselia like he did in the OVA. (Let's face it, Dirk was freakin' _awesome_ in the first episode.)

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Chapter I: Caged 

"Wake up, you scum!"

The cry had the desired effect. The human ranch prisoners jolted awake and scrambled like frightened mice to stand up and please their captors. Like a herd of docile sheep, they were lead out of their cells to be worked from dawn to dusk. It had always been like this. It would probably always be like this, forever and ever. Anna kept her head down, not looking at any of the Desian guards. She walked with the rest of her companions out of the main building and to the outside of the ranch. All around them was a twenty-foot tall electric fence, designed to keep all of the host bodies inside the ranch. The humans congregated in a large group in the center of the field, staring at the guards, awaiting their orders.

As it turned out, they would be set to pushing supply crates. Boxes of supplies came to the ranch on a weekly basis, and rather than having magi-technology machines do the work, the slaves had to shove and carry the crates to where they needed to be sent. It was hard and tedious work, but slack off or loose focus and the guards would punish the slaves. Sometimes they would even beat anyone within a certain radius of any slackers, just as a reminder.

Anna hefted a particularly heavy box, and tried to ignore her screaming muscles as a Desian told her where to go, indifferent to her discomfort. She staggered off with the too-large crate, hoping that she wouldn't drop the box. She did her work as quickly as she could. If she was good, then she _might_ not get hurt. She thought about the strange Exsphere embedded into her left hand, like a hard little parasite. The lord of the ranch, Kvar, had called the little gem a 'special gift'. It meant that she was important somehow. She didn't know why, other than that she was now a part of something called the Angelus Project, the purpose of which she had not as of yet been able to discover.

Not that she was treated any differently from any of the other prisoners. She was still treated like scum, like a pack animal to bully. After an undetermined amount of time spent moving heavy crates, Anna broke away from the main body of humans and found a convenient place by the fence to sit and rest for a moment, without the guards immediately catching sight of her. She sat down on the dying grass and tried to catch her breath. She had been here for many years but _still_ the work tired her out. She wasn't sure that she would be able to survive for much longer here.

She heard a whine to her right and she looked up. Something big and green was staring at her from the other side of the fence. One of its giant ears twitched and it tilted its head to one side, giving her a concerned look. It whined again.

Anna wasn't quite sure what it was (It looked a bit like a dog, but can dogs be that big? Or green?) but it seemed friendly enough. She carefully reached her arm through the wires of the fence to pat the dog on the head. "Hi there," she said, more cheerfully than she felt. It was around then that she saw past the dog's giant ears and noticed what looked like a pack strapped to its back. "You lost?" Anna asked the big green dog, "Is your owner looking for you?"

The answer came out of the underbrush, looking annoyed. "There you are." The auburn haired man growled at the dog, who looked upset, "Why'd you run off?" Then Kratos noticed Anna, and the fence separating the two. He looked up at the steel building of the ranch, and cursed his luck. He shouldn't be here. He shouldn't be _anywhere_ near a Desian human ranch, lest someone recognize him and ask why he was here.

"Um… is the green dog yours?" asked Anna, wondering what the strange man thought about being so close to a human ranch. She was so unused to seeing anyone from the outside, she wasn't quite sure what to say, other than 'shoo'.

"Yes, he is mine," confirmed the stranger, walking up to the dog and putting a hand on its neck, "And he shouldn't have run off like that," he growled at the 'dog'. He was apparently upset about his 'dog' running off, and by being so close to a human ranch. Noishe whined at the harsh tone in Kratos's voice.

"You should take him and go." Said Anna suddenly, "A Desian patrol might come by soon, and then they'd catch you and you'd be looking out at the world from this side of the fence."

Kratos didn't acknowledge Anna, but rather said to Noishe, "We need to go back."

Noishe, to Kratos's horror, hunkered down by Anna and stared back at the mercenary, his bug red tongue lolling. Anna giggled. "I think he likes me," she said, temporarily forgetting that she was a captive in a human ranch. She reached through the fence again and petted Noishe on the head. The protozoan panted happily – he seemed to be enjoying the attention.

Kratos frowned, "We don't have time for this Noishe. If you don't come back with me right now you won't have any supper tonight."

Noishe's ears drooped like flags in a dead wind, and he gave Kratos a look that could only be described as 'puppy eyes'. But he followed the seraph anyway, his head hung. Kratos walked away from the ranch without looking back. Anna watched them go, wishing she had asked for the man's name. It would have been reassuring, a reminder that there was a world beyond the fence.

"Hey, what are you doing there?"

Anna turned around to see two Desian whip masters, grinning down at her. "Slacking off are we?" asked one.

"N-no sir." stuttered Anna nervously, standing up, careful to look neither half-elf in the eye, "I-I was just-"

One of the Desians snorted, "Stop trying to make excuses A012," he sneered, "Lord Kvar has sent for you, so we can't have our fun until _after_ that. You should be grateful, worm." The speaker grabbed her by the arm and leader roughly into the main building of the ranch. Anna was a little grateful that Kvar had called, she might be able to worm her way out of a beating that way, even if the Desian Cardinal did make her skin crawl.

* * *

Kratos's new clients were not impressed. They were a group of pilgrims who planned to travel from Hima to Luin, and so far were not pleased with the mercenary. They were huddled in a small forest clearing when Kratos returned. 

"You said you would be able to control that animal!" said the lead pilgrim, when Kratos walked into the clearing, leading a depressed Noishe.

"Then I apologize for the lapse in control," said Kratos a little impatiently. He folded his arms across his chest and continued, "If you are unhappy my service, then I can return your payment and leave."

The lead pilgrim looked uncomfortable – he didn't want to travel in unfamiliar forests without an armed escort. "Fine," he said grudgingly, "You can stay." He walked away mumbling to himself.

Noishe whined, still depressed about leaving the lady behind at the ranch. "Stop moping," said Kratos, but quietly so only Noishe would be able to hear him, "I don't want her in the ranch either, but I can't go out of my way to help a complete stranger. Even if I wanted to, how would I smuggle her out of a secure building?" Noishe whined again, but this time Kratos ignored him. He felt a little guilty leaving that girl behind at the ranch. Regardless of how he felt about it, he still could not free her; he lacked the resources to help her, or any other human ranch prisoner on his own.

But he _had_ run away from Cruxis because he objected to institutions like the human ranches…

Noishe was _still_ depressed about leaving the ranch captive behind even hours after the event. His ears were still drooping, and did little else other than whine occasionally. Noishe was _still_ moping when Kratos and his clients set up camp for the night after an uneventful day. Kratos sighed, as Noishe's mood was finally beginning to bother him.

"All right Noishe," he whispered to the sulking protozoan, "Once I've brought these people to Luin, I'll go back to the ranch and try to smuggle some food in for the prisoners, but _that's it_! Happy now?"

Noishe perked up.

* * *

Anna was terrified of Kvar, but she knew she couldn't retreat or recoil without some punishment. She never looked forward to the times when Kvar called for her to examine his prize Exsphere in the making. She jumped through all their hoops. She sat in their weird beeping machine, and let the Desians examine her Exsphere up close. For a very long time she did all she could to resist the Desians. She kicked and punched and bit and even swore at them when they tried to force her to do anything. But her insolence was met only with pain, and soon her willpower was whittled away, leaving behind an Anna who fearfully obeyed the Desian's commands, however much she wanted to resist in her heart. 

At the end of the 'special session' came Kvar's own personal examination of the gem.

"Not much progress at all…" he muttered under his breath, as he held up Anna's hand to examine the purple jewel embedded in it. "Three years and almost no progress…" Kvar looked up at Anna. She had to suppress a shudder, "Don't you find it interesting that after all this time, your Exsphere has barely grown _at all_?"

Anna had learned by this time that Kvar expected some kind of answer. "No sir," she said in a quiet voice.

Kvar scowled, "You should," he snarled. Then he dropped Anna's hand as if he had just discovered that she was carrying a deadly virus. "Perhaps you are simply a poor host for my Exsphere. Regardless, if I do not see improvement soon, then I will no longer have any need of you." The Desian leader motioned to one of the guards to take Anna away. "Until next time," said Kvar, as he left the examination room.

Anna was lead away by two Desian guards. They guided her down the cold metal halls to the large prison area deep inside the ranch. The guard put her in the cell, locked the barred door behind her and left without a word. Anna walked over to a corner of the cell and sat down, wrapping her arms around her legs. She had wanted desperately to get back to her cell and see other humans while in the examination room; she felt a little safer when she was with other humans.

"Everything okay Anna?"

Anna looked up, and saw another prisoner, Evelyn sit down beside her. "You look awful," continued Evelyn, "Did they do anything to you?"

"It's nothing," said Anna dismissively, sounding more confident than she felt, "I just had to see Kvar again."

Evelyn scowled, "Someday, I'm going to punch him in the nose for you," she said, "I'll punch him for all of us." Evelyn made violent little punching motions in the air to demonstrate her intent.

"Just leave enough for me to take revenge on, okay?" said Anna, feeling a little better. She liked Evelyn, she always made Anna feel better. Evelyn had been imprisoned in the ranch only a month after Anna, and for the most part their sanity remained intact after their relatively short stay at the ranch because they kept each other company.

Anna huddled a little closer in her corner, before confiding in her friend, in a whisper so none of the other prisoners could hear, "I talked to someone from outside the ranch today."

Evelyn looked amazed, "You WHAT?" she yelled, excitedly. After noticing the glances she got from the others, she lowered her voice and said, "Who was it? What were they doing at the ranch?" her eyes lit up even more, "Did they come to free us?"

Anna hesitated, she didn't want to disappoint her friend, "I don't think so," she admitted, "His… dog had run up to the fence and he had come to take it back to wherever."

Evelyn grinned, "Oh… is was a _man_ was it?" she said, like this was some big secret she and Anna shared, "What did you two talk about? Was he handsome?"

"_Evelyn_!" protested Anna, "All I did was tell him to go away before any guards show up and capture him! That's it! I didn't even get his name."

Evelyn pouted, "You have no romance in your soul," she muttered, "Not even a sense of adventure."

"Oh please Evelyn," said Anna "It was just a random thing. Nothing would have come of it even if I had talked to the guy more."

"Suuuuure," said Evelyn, clearly enjoying herself.

Anna sighed, "Evelyn, it was just some guy. It wasn't a big deal."

"Are you sure?" persisted Evelyn, who has spent many nights of her childhood reading romance novels by candlelight. "There wasn't any kind of special sensation when you looked into his eyes? Could you feel the touch of Destiny? Could you tell if you were soul mates?"

"_Soul mates_?" said Anna, aghast, "Evelyn, I met the guy _today_, and I only saw him for about a _minute_. Nothing is going to come of it. I'm probably never going to see him again anyway."

Evelyn winked, "Hey, you never know."

* * *

**A/N:** Evelyn CAN SEE THE FUTURE! 

That's the problem of writing a story where everyone knows what's going to happen... you can't foreshadow properly.

Anyway, if you liked the chapter, (or even if you didn't) please press the special purple button and review.


	3. Coming Back

This chapter was a pain to write, I kept deciding that I didn't like how one scene was going, then I'd have to fix another...

I should stop whining now.

Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Symphonia, not the characters, locations, or plotline. It makes me sad, but it's true...

* * *

Chapter II: Coming Back 

"What do you mean he's not there?"

The lesser angel repeated his statement, "Lord Aurion is not in his quarters. Do you wish me to seek him out Lord Yggdrasill?"

Mithos wasn't sure how to react. Kratos was _always_ in his quarters at this time of day (if it could be called that on Derris-Kharlan) like clockwork. The man was so regular when it came to his schedule sometimes it was like he was one of the lesser angels, living a preset life without need or want.

Mithos dismissed his surprise; perhaps Kratos just broke his cycle this once. "Yes, go and look for him. This mission is important." _I must find out that Kvar's secret Angelus Project is_…

The lesser angel bowed with a respectful "Yes, my Lord," and flew off to search for the elusive seraph. Mithos settled back into his throne-like seat. He had overreacted. Yet he couldn't shake the feeling that something had gone wrong. Kratos had been behaving strangely these past few centuries. Slowly he spent more and more time shut up in his quarters with Noishe as his only company. These times he would refuse the company of others, even Mithos – this old apprentice – or even _Yuan_ – Kratos's best friend. When he was with others, he seemed distant, and spent a lot of time staring out at the stars and the blue planet below Derris-Kharlan. Recently he had become more argumentative then Mithos ever remembered him being. When he disagreed with with Mithos, and he did disagree about almost _everything_, he would speak out against his old pupil.

Whatever was wrong with his companion, Mithos would find out.

* * *

Anna had curled up in a tight ball, her shoulders shaking with unsuppressed sobs. People died at the ranch almost every other week, but that never made it easier to bear, especially when the victim was young. Why did the Goddess Martel let this happen? Why didn't she answer their prayers? Why… 

She looked up when she heard a soft whine. She had been curled up at the side of the main building of the ranch, and now across from her, looking at her from the other side of the electrified fence, was a big green dog. It barked happily at her.

Anna got up and walked up to the fence. It had been a week ago that she had seen it, why was it back? And if the dog was back, then was its owner here too?

As if summoned by the thought, the mysterious auburn-haired man came out of the trees. He stared at her, as if seeing some strange creature for the first time.

"W-what are you doing here?" Anna stuttered, "You don't want to get caught! What if a patrol comes by?"

"The last patrol just went by," said the stranger, "The next one should not come for another seven minutes."

Anna just stared. "How do you know that?"

"I watched the groups patrolling outside the ranch," lied Kratos. He already knew all the patrol patterns, among other things concerning the human ranches, by heart, "I was careful."

"Well… um…" Anna felt her face heat up. Why would a total stranger go to such lengths to come back to the ranch? "Why'd you come?"

"Noishe," he put a hand on the protozoan's head, "Was upset that we left you last time."

"So you were manipulated by a dog?" said Anna, bewildered.

Kratos said and did nothing. Anna couldn't tell if the thought of being manipulated had just entered his mind and he didn't like it, or if he had thought of it and didn't want to be reminded.

"So… you just came back to please your dog… Noishe?"

Kratos shook his head, and turned and rummaged in the pack strapped to Noishe's back. Anan watched at he withdrew a loaf of bread from his pack and held it out. "I imagine you don't get much to eat inside there."

Anna snatched it without even a 'thanks' and was nibbling on the last bit of crust a minute later. Slightly alarmed by this, Kratos started giving her more. It was not long until Anna seemed satisfied, then she stared up at Kratos, a few crumbs still clinging to her face. "Why are you doing this?"

Kratos was silent – why _was_ he doing this? It wasn't just for Noishe, the protozoan didn't have _that_ much power over the seraph. Kratos was struggling to explain, even to himself, why he felt he had to do this. Was it because he had left Cruxis in objection to this, but had not done anything when confronted with the issue? Perhaps he didn't know why himself.

Anna looked down at her feet, then back up at him. "What's your name?"

Kratos considered lying, before saying, "Kratos Aurion. And you are?" He could plainly see her number, A012, stitched on her raggedy dress, but it did not feel right to call her by the number her captors had given her.

"I'm Anna Cole,"

They both heard the footsteps and the voices then. The next Desian patrol was coming. Kratos swore under his breath – he had stayed too long. He had turned to go, directing Noishe with a gentle tug on a giant ear. Noishe however, needed to telling, he had already bolted off into the woods surrounding the ranch – he could smell the approaching Desians, and didn't like what his keen nose was telling him.

Kratos however, hung back for just a moment. He quickly turned back to Anna, "I will come back," and then he turned again and ran off after Noishe. Anna was left staring off into the trees.

_Had he just promised_…

Then the patrol came. Anna quickly wiped her face with what could vaguely be called a sleeve. She didn't want crumbs on her face to tell her captors that someone had just smuggled her food. The patrolling Desians looked at her with distaste. Even though a fence separated them, they scared her. She fled without a word.

* * *

Kratos looked down at Noishe, who was trotting by his side. The protozoan seemed to be in a very good mood – his eyes were erect, his tongue was hanging out of his mouth, his tail was wagging vigorously, and he barked occasionally at anything that interested him. 

_At least he's happy_…

Kratos was busy trying to deal with his doubts. What if that woman, Anna Cole, was punished or killed because of his contact with her? What if he was captured and sent back to Mithos if he tried to visit her again? He was risking a lot, and for _what_?

But she had been so… pathetic. Skinny, scared, broken, and aware that she would die in that terrible place. He knew what those places were like; he had visited them more times than he could remember. This time though, things were different. He wasn't here for Cruxis, he wasn't doing this because Yggdrasill ordered him to.

But he wasn't doing it because it was 'the right thing' either. Any notions he had of doing 'the right thing' had died long ago. He had lived too long and seen too much to believe that there was really any good in this or any world. Good and evil were vague concepts that greedy or small men bent to justify a cause or an action. They didn't really exist.

Kratos stopped walking and watched Noishe as the protozoan trotted ahead of him, his tail wagging vigorously behind him. Nioshe, realizing that his old friend was no longer following him, looked behind him at the seraph, who was staring up at the sky, apparently deep in thought. Noishe wined and walked over to the man, and affectionately nuzzled his hand, in an effort to cheer up the angel.

Kratos absentmindedly scratched the animal behind his giant ears. Noishe perked up, feeling good. _I cannot continue to meet with that girl, at least not for much longer. What can I do for her, if anything_… wondered Kratos, _What _should_ I do_…

* * *

"So that guy _did_ come back!" 

"Evelyn!"

"I bet he thinks you're hot, even when you're skinny as a rake!"

"_Evelyn_!"

"Quiet you two!"

Even Evelyn fell silent when the guard snapped at them. The prisoners all looked away, and were completely silent for several minutes as the guard muttered angry curses. The rest of the prisoners then turned to glare angrily at Evelyn and Anna; hopefully they would _only_ be yelled at for being noisy.

Anna had told Evelyn about seeing Kratos again, and unfortunately her friend had overreacted, leading to the guard losing his patience. This did not, however, ultimately stop Evelyn. When the other captives stopped glaring at them, she said to Anna, in a low whisper, "What did I tell you? It's destiny! He came back for you!"

Anna was starting to regret confiding in her friend. "Evelyn, please don't let the whole ranch know about it!" she whispered, "What if he gets caught because the Desians heard that I met him?"

"Then you'll have all the time in the world to get to know him!" said Evelyn, with more cheer than her statement suggested.

Anna gaped at her friend, "That's horrible!" she said, "I don't _want_ him _in_ the ranch!"

Evelyn shrugged, "Then he might whisk you off your feet and take you away."

Anna hid her face in her hands. "That's…"

"…Impossible," finished Evelyn for Anna, becoming suddenly serious, "Face it Anna, if Mr. Mysterious doesn't whisk you away… you're gonna die here. So just… try to stay a little hopeful… a little longer… for me? You're probably one of five people who have any kind of cheer left. Don't let it just die. Okay?"

Anna uncovered her face and looked down at her knees. "Okay," she mumbled, "Okay, I'll try… for you, I'll try."

* * *

Anna waited by the section of fence where she had met Kratos before. She knew that she was pushing her luck, shirking work more than once to meet Kratos. But… she couldn't just… let go of the little hope she now had… 

No matter what she told Evelyn, Anna thought that maybe, deep down, she _did_ hope that Kratos would take her away from the ranch. She knew it was a foolish notion – she would probably never live a life outside the human ranch ever again – but at the same time, she just could _not_ let it go. Some little part of her knew she was being clingy, but at the same time, it would be impossible to release this hope. She had been living for years, afraid that after today there might not be a tomorrow, and it had broken her.

She looked up when she heard footsteps. And sure enough, it was Kratos with Noishe at his side.

"You… you really did come back," said Anna, almost in awe.

Kratos said nothing. Noishe was more welcoming, attempting to stick his muzzle through the electrified fence to nuzzle the captive on the other side. Anna giggled and patted the protozoan. Kratos watched on, his face perfectly emotionless. Whatever he was thinking he hid from the rest of the world.

Without looking up, Anna asked, "Why did you come back? You didn't have to…"

"I wanted to give you this," he said. He rummaged through the pack on Noishe's back for a minute, before withdrawing a long knife in a leather sheath. He handed it to her through the electric fence. She took it, but cautiously, unused to handling weapons. The dagger was heavy, and the old leather of the sheath rough against her hands. "Hide it from the Desians," said Kratos.

"Why…?"

"Because otherwise you would suffer for the rest of your life," said Kratos, his voice betraying no emotion, "This way death will be swift. " After a pause he added, "I am truly sorry that I can do nothing else for you or the other prisoners."

Anna could not believe her hears. Was he telling her to…? How could he be so insensitive? What made him think she was just going to give up like that? "You don't really think I'm just going to kill myself?" she demanded.

"Would you rather be tortured and humiliated by the Desians until they see fit to kill you?" replied Kratos, "This was you can retain some dignity."

Noishe looked up at the auburn-haired man and whined. "Come Noishe," he said, "We're leaving."

Noishe's ears drooped, but he followed his old friend without complain. Kratos turned to leave.

"Wait!" shouted Anna, "Will you come back again?"

Kratos looked back at her and shook his head, "No, this is the last time we will ever see one another. Farewell, miss Cole." He turned his back to her and walked away, leaving behind nothing but silence. Anna held onto the leather sheath a little tighter. She looked down at the weapon, and then hid it under her dress.

_I won't die,_ she thought resolutely, _Not yet. If death is all I have to look forward to, then I'll try to do what no one else could, and get away from this place._

* * *

**A/N:** It kind of bothers me how this story is kind of favoring Anna in terms of perspective. I wanted to to be 50/50. But I have to develop her character... 

Enough of that. Please review! Reviews make me a very happy Spork.


	4. Fly Away

I have so much stuff I need to update... including an unfinished gift fic.

I'm terrible. (-angsts-)

But the story moves along, and I get to introduce a bunch of new OC's! Yay!

Disclaimer: Tales of Symphonia and its characters, plot line, and locations, all belong to Bandai-Namco, or whatever it is they call themselves now. But all the OC's in this story are mine, and if you steal them, I'll come after you with a club that has a nail in it, hear me? Rawr.

* * *

Chapter III: Fly Away 

Kvar stared at the ceiling. He was bored. It was just… one of those days. Even torturing some of the more rowdy host bodies didn't lift his mood, and that usually cured his melancholy. He sighed, he hated days like this.

He stood up and walked to a window that looked out at the fields where the host bodies were put to work. He smiled a little as he watched one get whipped by one of his men. Human suffering. How delicious.

Maybe he would call A012 for an extra 'examination'. Yes... that would be fun. He liked watching her squirm.

He opened the door to his office and called two of his men over, "Bring me the Angelus Project."

Then he closed the door again, leaving the men to do as they were told.

* * *

Anna quickly discovered that attempting to hide a heavy knife underneath her thin raggedy dress was harder than she had originally thought. _At least if they try to kill me for having a weapon, I can use it for the purpose Kratos intended,_ she thought bitterly. 

She and the other captives had been herded back into the cells. But before cell door was even closed, two more Desians entered the prison.

"Lord Kvar wants A012," said one.

One of the prison guards, looked right at Anna, having learned that this particular host body was special, and it was important to know which one she was. "Get out, human," snapped the guard.

_Why would Kvar want to see me now?_ Wondered Anna, doing as she was told. She tried to shift her arms so that they would not see the shape of the knife she pressed against her body with her arm. All she had to do was reach inside her sleeve to retrieve it, but she didn't want to spoil her chances. She obeyed her 'masters', following the two guards out of the prison to whatever fate Kvar had in mind.

She followed them down a long, and mostly empty corridor. Anna kept her head down, desperate to keep from drawing attention to herself and her contraband. She kept her pace slow to not seem too eager to see the lord of the ranch. But her speed did not satisfy her guards.

"Hurry up, human!" snarled one, grabbing her arm and jerking her forward.

There was a clatter.

The guards looked down, and saw a knife and its empty sheath lying on the ground. They looked at Anna, her face pale.

"Where did you get that?" demanded one guard. He shook her violently when she didn't answer, "Tell me! Where did you get that knife?"

She bit her lip, hoping that they would not force her to reveal Kratos as the one that gave her the weapon. The Desian threw her to the floor in anger. This was a mistake that cost him his life.

His comrade watched in mild horror as the host body picked up the knife and, jabbed wildly at the first guard, who fell to the ground with a wet gurgle. Anna looked in sickened horror at the fallen half-elf, then at the bloodied blade she had in her hand.

The first guard backed away a step, wondering if the human was capable of killing him too. She looked at him, and shakily stood up, waving the stained blade in front of her.

"S-stay away from me!" she stuttered, not sounding fierce at all.

When the Desian didn't move, she turned and ran from him as fast as she could, gripping the knife as tightly as if it was the only thing that kept her from dying at that very moment. She had to find a way out, but how? She couldn't just run out the front gate, and the fence around the ranch was electrified. Maybe an air duct could get her out of the main building, but what then?

She found an entrance to an ventilation shaft near the end of the corridor. She almost threw herself at it, clawing at the grille until she had pried it off. It wouldn't get her out of the ranch, and she could already hear shouting behind her, but maybe she could hide somewhere until she thought of a better plan.

She just barely squeezed into the shaft. If she had not been starved the way she had, she probably would have gotten stuck. She crawled on her hands and knees, trying to worm her way through the narrow shaft. Every moment she was sure she would feel a hand snatch her ankle and drag her out of the safety of this narrow place and back into the cells.

How long she stayed in that dark, cramped space she would never know. After what felt like a century, she saw a small speck of light ahead. She crawled just a little faster, almost tripping over her own hands and feet in her race to reach the light. The light soon formed into another grille, that looked out onto a grassy field. As soon as she reached it however, she realized that there were trees outside too. Bewildered, she slammed the grate with her shoulder and all the force her little body could muster, and toppled out onto the grass. She breathed heavily for a few minutes, trying to regain her breath. As soon as she sat up, she realized that she was no longer inside the fence. The shaft had led her to a small hole several yards _away_ from the fence.

She stood up, not allowing her mind to linger on this miracle. She saw a dirt path and started running down the barren stretch as fast as her legs would carry her. She wanted to be as far away from her prison as she could ever be, she wanted to reach the end of the world, if she possibly could.

She left the knife behind.

* * *

Kratos heard the runner long before he saw who it was. His angelic hearing picked up on the stumbling footsteps and the desperate labored breathing long before he saw its source. Kratos rested a hand on the hilt of his sword, turning toward the source of the sound. Dropping into a ready fighting stance, he waited patiently, looking down the path for the approaching sound, prepared if the sound should come his way. It did. 

Anna fell more than ran through the trees, terror egged her on, and fear sustained her flight though the forest. She tore past the trees and the bushes in her desperate bid for freedom. She looked over her shoulder trying to spot her invisible pursuers when she ran headlong into something. She fell to the ground with a thud, and stared up groggily at what she had collided with.

It was a very surprised looking Kratos.

"I think I heard something! Over there!"

Anna turned in the direction of the voice. _They're catching up!_ She thought in a panic, _I have to get away!_

She felt strong hands pick her off the ground, cover her moth, and hastily carry her off the path. She struggled and writhed automatically, before realizing that it was Kratos who had picked her up and hidden behind a larger tree at the edge of the path. He turned his head in the direction of the footsteps his keen ears heard. As if on cue, a group of five Desian scouts ran down the path.

"I could've sworn I saw something..." said one scout lamely.

"You _idiot_!" snarled a second, "We don't have time to waste! Do you have any idea what Lord Kvar will do to us if we return and say that we've lost the _Angelus Project_?!"

_The Angelus...?_ Kratos looked down at Anna, a feeling of horror growing in the pit of his stomach. He knew about the Angelus Project, and he knew that it was _extremely important_. Of all the prisoners he could have _possibly_ encountered, it just had to be the Angelus Project!

He was waist deep in trouble now.

"Shut up, the pair of you!" snarled a third Desian, "Ever moment you twits spend arguing, the further away the Project gets! Now MOVE IT!"

The chided Desians murmured angry retorts under their breath, but ran on down the path, utterly failing to notice their target hiding behind a tree just a few feet from where they had stood.

Kratos did not release Anna until he could no longer hear the footfalls of Anna's pursuers. When he did, he glared down at her.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

"I..." she started shyly. Then she rallied, what right did he have to ask her something like that? "I'm escaping!" she said defensively.

Kratos glanced in the direction that the Desians had run. That explained them. "That was very foolish."

"Why?" snapped Anna, "That I got away from the bastard who were going to kill me anyway?! You don't know what it's like in there!" her eyes started to fill with unbidden tears with the memory of life inside the human ranch, "You don't know what it's like, living every day with the threat of death hanging over your head! Never having any privacy, you're never clean or well fed, or... or..." she trailed off, completely dissolving into tears.

Kratos was taken aback by this sudden change in mood. Crying women was something he rarely had to deal with. So he fell back on a well-used tactic: not caring.

"Tears will not win my sympathy," he said coldly.

She glared at him, her face tear-stained, "I d-don't want y-your sympathy!" she said. She had tried to snap, but the sentence came out as a chocked sob.

Kratos made a displeased 'hmph' noise. "Say what you wish," he said, "But if you remain here for much longer, you will be recaptured, and no doubt they will put you down."

"P-put me down?!" said Anna, her eyes wide.

"Were you not aware that is the standard punishment for trying to escape?" said Kratos.

"I g-guessed that!" said Anna, wiping her face with a dirty sleeve, "B-but why did you say 'put down'? I-I'm not an a-animal!"

_Damn. _"The term I use to describe it is irrelevant. It will be your fate if you linger here."

He stepped out onto the path, and turned back to look at a still teary Anna, who had not moved. "I thought you wanted to escape," he said, when she didn't follow him.

She stared at him, "W-why are you helping me?" she asked meekly.

There was a whine behind her. She turned to see Noishe, who had finally worked up the courage to leave the underbrush he had been hiding in. She gingerly reached out and patted him on the head.

"I have my reasons," said Kratos, trying to regain Anna's attention, "You are an escaped prisoner from a Desian Human Ranch. I'm sure that you have a family somewhere that misses you." Anna was completely taken back by his response. But as it turned out, her surprise was wasted, "...And I'm sure that family is willing to pay for your safe return," finished Kratos.

Anna glared at him. "Is that all you can think about?!" she yelled, her outcry making Noishe whine, "Money?! Is that the only reason you're helping me?!"

"Originally it was pity," admitted Kratos, "But now that you have escaped, I'm sure there's something to be gained by helping you." He frowned at the livid look on Anna's face, "I'm a mercenary. It's how I make a living. If you want my protection for your journey home, then I would advice that you keep your holier-than-thou lectures to yourself."

Anna balled her fists, but knew that striking the man would not help her get home, or away from the ranch. She would be almost totally at the mercy of a _bastard_ who was only helping her for monetary gain. Wasn't there anyone in the world who wanted to do good _because_ it was good? She was almost sure now that she would never meet anyone like that.

She was hurt by his callousness, but said nothing. She walked shyly over to him, careful not to look him in the eye. She tried to swallow back her tears.

"Good," said Kratos, ignoring her obvious distress, "Get on Noishe. We'll head to Luin. It's the nearest town, and we can pick up supplies there."

"Luin_ is_ my home," said Anna.

Kratos sighed, "That's still close to the ranch. But if that is where your home is, fine. Then this journey shall be quick."

Anna nodded, and then turned to Noishe. The 'dog', lay down on the dirt road, and with a tilt of his head, invited her to get on his back. After a nervous hesitation, she did so. Noishe stood back u with surprising ease, as if his burdens (Anna and the saddlebags) weighted nothing. Anna felt the the rhythm of Noishe's trot as he followed his master down the dirt path.

Anna watched Kratos walk ahead of her. He didn't even turn his head to see if she was okay. She looked down at her hands, why was she so upset by his attitude? Maybe she had believed Evelyn, if just a little bit, and only in some lonely corner of her soul. Maybe some small part of her _had_ believed that he was her savior. That he would sweep her off her feet and carry her away from all the terrors, from everything that was dangerous and scary. Maybe she had believed that he could be... may be... her soul mate.

With hindsight, she realized what a stupid notion that was. He was a mercenary. His skills were for sale, not his loyalty. He had no reason to care. She was just a stupid, hopeless girl who wanted to see something special in a man she had seen only twice before.

She bit her lip. Soon he would lead her home, and then he would get his money and he would be gone from her life forever. Then she would never have to think about him ever again.

* * *

The sooner he disassociated himself from her the better. 

Kratos knew that he had put himself in an extraordinarily dangerous position. He had heard about the Angelus Project, the brainchild of Cardinal Kvar. He had not realized before that this girl was a part of the Project. No doubt Kvar would use all his resources and men to find her again. If they found Kratos with her, Yggdrasill would discover that his precious seraph had run away, and then Kratos would have no place to hide. There would be nowhere in either world Kratos would ever be safe from Cruxis. The sooner he brought Anna to her home, and the sooner he left the better. The incident would be forgotten, and his cover would be unharmed.

Traveling with Anna, while not actually unpleasant, wasn't something he particularly wished to repeat. She was silent for most of the short journey, content to keep her head down, submissive. The fire he had seen in her seemed to have died down. On one hand, that meant he didn't have to try to control her, on the other, her behavior did not make her good company. What Noishe saw in her Kratos thought he would never know.

It took three days to reach Luin. On his own he could have made it in one, but Anna, even while riding Noishe, lacked the fortitude to travel at his pace. And she had to eat and sleep, he had discovered, something that he usually never bothered with. Noishe seemed to have taken on the roll as mother hen, and encouraged Anna to eat the food Kratos provided from the saddlebags. Noishe let Anna sleep on him at night, and let her play with his big ears while they traveled. She was certainly easy to amuse, at any rate.

All the while Kratos tried to minimize contact with her. He talked to her only when it was necessary, and even avoided looking at her. As long as she stayed out of his mind, and as soon as she was out of his life, he would be out of danger. He wondered if she realized that she would never again be out of danger. The Desians would hunt her for the rest of her life. Recapture was almost inevitable. They would always be after her, and all it would take, would be just one mistake.

He was relieved when he finally saw Luin in the distance. He himself did not recognize the city himself, but he didn't have to. The native identified it for him.

"It's Luin!" shouted Anna excitedly.

Kratos looked out at the distant buildings. He couldn't recall if he had been to Luin before. He had been to _a_ Luin, but the city had been destroyed and rebuilt so many times he didn't trust his memory of the place. Perhaps it had been razed and repaired since he had last been to Luin.

"C'mon Noishe!" Anna urged, "Faster!"

Noishe whined, and then bolted. He turned into a screaming green blur that rushed in the direction of the city. Kratos sighed. The protozoan wasn't going to get his dinner for running away from him. Why did Noishe have to be so reckless? It certainly didn't help Kratos at all.

Anna screamed in terror, clinging to Noishe as tightly as she dared. "SLOW DOWN!" she yelled. Noishe complied, apparently a little disappointed that he didn't get to show off. Noishe trotted up to a small wooden bridge over a little river that led to Luin. Anna's heart leaped into her throat, almost chocking her with happiness and nostalgia. She _recognized_ this place. She was home.

Anna almost tumbled off Noishe in her haste. Noishe whined in alarm as he saw his charge sprint off into the city. He ran after her.

Anna paid no attention to the 'dog' as she ran into the city that was her home. Tears rolled down her face, as she ran onto Main Street, the old familiar buildings seemingly untouched by the passing of eternities she had spent in the ranch. People in the street turned to see this strange, dirty girl fall to her knees, sobbing wildly into the cobbles.

She felt something cold and wet on her face. She looked up to see Noishe, who was giving her a comforting nuzzle. She hugged him with surprising strength for someone so thin, beaten, and weak.

"I'm home!" she sobbed into his fur, "I'm home! I'm home!"

"Anna?"

The prisoner looked up at the sound of her name. The woman looking down at her was a familiar face; long blond hair, bright green eyes, and the book that was forever glued to her arm. The bookish woman had been a childhood friend of Anna's. Anna had not seen her in years.

"J-Jess," she sniffed.

"I thought you were dead!" the one named Jess shouted, "They took you off to the ranch! How'd you get out?"

"I..." she choked on the words.

Jess dropped down at Anna's side, "You poor thing!" Jess said, fussing, "You're skinny as a twig! We'll get you to your mother's and we'll get you fixed right up! All right?"

Anna nodded, and murmured a slightly strangled "T-thanks."

"ANNA!" roared a booming voice. A _huge_ man almost knocked the crowd forming around Anna over in his haste to reach her. He stared down at the relatively diminutive girl, his brown eyes wide, a smile appearing behind his rough brown beard.

He scooped her up in his huge, hairy, muscular arms, "YOU'RE ALIVE!" he bellowed, nearly crushing the poor girl.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face in his chest. "I missed you too, Bruno," she snuffled.

He put her down again, "You had us all worried sick, little sister," he said, though he didn't sound upset now that his sibling had returned, "How did you get out of the ranch?"

Bruno's eyes slid off of his sister when he heard Noishe whine behind her. Anna turned to see Noishe giving Kratos a friendly nuzzle. Kratos gently shoved Noishe away. He didn't look up at her. He and Noishe were completely alone on a deserted street for all he seemed to care.

"Who are you?" demanded Bruno, "I haven't seen you around here before."

Kratos looked up, apparently unimpressed by Bruno, "My name is Kratos Aurion, and I am a mercenary. Before you make any more judgments, perhaps you would like to know that it was _I_ who brought miss Cole here after she escaped from the ranch."

Bruno narrowed his eyes. He had never once met a mercenary he had liked. "Then I thank you for helping her," he said with forced politeness, "I imagine you expect payment? Fine. We aren't a family of means, but I'm sure I can produce a sum to your satisfaction."

Anna didn't look at Kratos. She made an active effort to completely forget about him. She was home now, she didn't need him anymore. Then, once again she heard someone call her name. She looked behind Bruno at the crowd that had formed. She saw another man trying to shove his way through the crowd. Unlike Bruno, he lacked the bulk to shove his way through the crowd, and was far too polite to try.

Anna recognized him immediately.

He stumbled over to her, blushing slightly at his graceless entrance. He pushed his glasses back into position, and gave her a shy smile. Her brown eyes looked into his green ones. He pushed some of his dark brown hair out of his face, while trying to think of something to say.

He didn't have to say anything. Anna nearly toppled him with the force of her hug, once again finding herself burying her face into a familiar shoulder.

"I missed you so much, Willace."

After Willace regained his balance, he hugged her back, "I missed you too, darling."

Anna knew she was safe now, because she was in the arms of her fiancé.

* * *

**A/N**: LE GASP! 

As far as I know, the 'Anna's already engaged' thing has never been done before, so I'm quite proud of it. I like Willace though. I like Bruno too. Dunno about Jess, she was kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing.

I know Anna's escape was kind of half-assed, using Pietro's tunnel thingie. I couldn't think of anything better.

Is this story going kind of fast for anyone? I want to keep the pace up because I don't want this to be too long or dull. Please tell me if I'm going too fast.

Reviews make me happy. Please review.


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